Forgotten History: World's Biggest Black Powder Cannon - a 100-Ton Gun

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The largest muzzleloading black powder cannons ever built were the Armstrong 100-ton guns which saw service with the Italian Navy and with British coastal fortifications on Malta and Gibraltar. They were purchased by the Italians first, to outfit a pair of new super battleships, each vessel having two turrets with two of these guns in each. To avoid being outclassed, the British ordered two guns for installation to protect the Grand Harbor of Malta and two more to protect Gibraltar. Today one survives at each location, and we are visiting the Rinella Battery in Malta, which was built to house one of the Maltese guns.
These guns had a maximum range of 8 miles, and was capable of piercing 15 inches of iron armor at 3 miles. It had a 17.7 inch (45cm) bore fired a 2000 pound (900 kg) shell with a 450 pound (200kg) charge of black powder. The gun itself weighed approximately 102 tons, and with its cradle and a shell the whole assembly came in at 150 tons.
Aside from the massive scale of the piece, the most interesting part of its design is actually the loading machinery. Because of the titanic size of the gun and ammunition, Armstrong designed a fascinating hydraulic reloading facility which makes up the body of the fortress in which the gun is set. A pair of steam engines drove a pair of hydraulic accumulators, which provided hydraulic pressure to move the gun on its carriage, to douse the barrel after firing, to hoist ammunition into position for loading and power a 60-foot (18m) ramrod to mechanically ram the charge and shell into place. Two mirror-image reloading galleries under the fortification operated in turn, giving the gun a sustained rate of fire of 1 round every 6 minutes - at least until its 120-round barrel life was exhausted.
I am grateful for the Malta Tourism Authority's assistance in helping to make this visit and video possible, and would also like to give special thanks to Simon, our awesome reenactor guide!
Contact:
Forgotten Weapons
6281 N Oracle #36270
Tucson, AZ 85704

Опубликовано:

9 июл 2018

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Комментарии : 4,1 тыс.

@Zestence 4 года назад

"If you're interested in having this one yourself, there's a link in the description below to rock island catalog page"

@keeperofthecheese 4 года назад

Collection only.

@UniversalGuides 4 года назад

two thumbs up for the lol

@alexadad2005 4 года назад

Built before 1889, so no FFL required.

@frankbauerful 4 года назад

Of course the law requires it be delivered with a 100kg red plastic plug in the muzzle.

@roku_nine 4 года назад

Sold for $320,418 (handling & shipping cost not included)

@ZombolicBand 4 года назад

New guy: Will i lose my hearing from firing this, sir? Veteran: WHAT!?

@jayski2378 4 года назад

I can relate lol

@billwessels207 4 года назад

A friend of mine during WWII served on a Tin Can as a Yeoman (that means that he fired expert on a typewriter) and his battle station was a 105mm, the biggest piece on a Tin Can. Most of the others were 20mm. A 105mm at sea is the equivalent of a pea shooter. About useless unless you count using for antiaircraft. They never used hearing protection. They all became severely hearing impaired. The sound would resonate throughout the ship and affected everyone aboard.

@Bluesnipible 4 года назад

@Clarissa 1986 ?

@samuelgolian3535 3 года назад

I think loosing one`s hearing was the least of their problems, I imagine anyone standing near would be turned int pulp when it fired :-D

@carbon1255 3 года назад

And your teeth.

@UGSETH2 4 года назад

I realise i'm spoiled when i half-expect him to shoot it..

@rusumner-fergusson8747 3 года назад

Me too

@giga-ratsey1420 2 года назад

I mean you can go there and fire cannons, just not that one sadly

@johndododoe1411 2 года назад

It's probably worn out. 4 test fires/year times 20 years, plus a few extra tests, gets pretty close to a 100 shot barrel lifetime.

@MrAsus3571 2 года назад

Yeah I felt entitled to lol

@mjspice100 4 месяца назад

It’s no longer capable of being fired. Fort Rinella was left derelict for a number of years and thieves stripped the cannon for metal parts to sell for scrap. A lot of essential components were lost and cannot be replaced.

@sohamsengupta6470 3 года назад

I love how this gun literally has this absolutely glorious cutting edge hydraulic mechanism to load it and then there's literally a guy pulling a cord to fire it and destroy his eardrums

@nmotschidontwannagivemyrea8932 3 года назад

I wonder if they enlisted guys who were already deaf just to be the cord pullers

@clownworld4655 3 года назад

This really isn’t unusual at all. The modern artillery guns we use in the American military use a cord to fire. It’s so you can be far enough away to not get severely injured or killed by the gun recoiling. I’ve fired a 115mm recoilless cannon and it literally just had a button on the side that you slap

@sohamsengupta6470 3 года назад

@@clownworld4655 Sure, but neither of those have a charge of some four sacks of black powder lmao

@clownworld4655 3 года назад

@@sohamsengupta6470 that makes zero difference. If anything the modern cannons are far more brutal

@sohamsengupta6470 3 года назад

@@clownworld4655 You're telling me that the report of one artillery cannon firing is louder than four whole sacks of black powder?

@simonmgustafsson 6 лет назад

Meeting Ian in person and showing him around the Battery was amazing and so much fun! You are more than welcome back at any time! If you come to visit again we will have done even more to restore the Battery to it's former glory! Best wishes and I hope to see a bunch of your fans come here and enjoy a day with us!

@ForgottenWeapons 6 лет назад

Thanks!

@matthayward7889 6 лет назад

You have an exceedingly cool Job 😊

@paulcheney4114 6 лет назад

What a great video thanks for your information you have a great job

@andrewp8284 6 лет назад

Simon Gustafsson thank you for showing Ian/us around! It was really interesting.

@neilhightower2270 6 лет назад

Simon Gustafsson thank you for helping make this awsome video possible

@buttons157 5 лет назад

Disassembly is always the best part. It seems to have been forgotten this time.

@karlchenkarolinger5799 5 лет назад

@Roderick storey Not a musket. Its rifled

@ParanoidMaster 4 года назад

@Roderick storey Irony can be a tough nut to crack, right?! ;)

@mikebay9967 4 года назад

If you have a spare tactical nuke you can disassemble it yourself...

@sumvs5992 4 года назад

Wasnt enough space on the camera to do a 3 week long time lapse.

@ZGryphon 4 года назад

Imagine the size of -ballpoint pen- Universal Disassembly Tool it would have taken to do that.

@T33K3SS3LCH3N 4 года назад

The escalation in guns afterwards was even more insane. The peak in naval artillery were the 9x460 mm guns of the Yamato class, each having a 150 ton barrel, firing a 13-ton broadside up to 42 km/26 mi. At up to 2 shells per minute, rather than reloading 6 minutes like this one.

@AndrewGivens 4 месяца назад

It wasn't al *that* mad compared to this period, when you consider that the ships of the 1940s generation were 45,000 to 60,000 tons displacement, carrying these high-power 16s and super-heavy 18s, three to a turret - but the monster-gun design generation of the 1870s to late 1880s were 'mere' ten- to eleven-thousand tonners (Fourteen in the case of the massively-engined 'Italias'), carrying a quartet of these pre-nuclear megaweapons, making each piece a *far, far* greater percentage of the entire fighting machine's mass overall. The 40s behemoths were safely inside the day's envelope - these ones just tore through theirs with abandon.

@arm279145 4 года назад

“If you have this shotgun in the garden, no one dares trespass” I really like that turn of phrase lol

@arm279145 2 года назад

@Knight-Sgt. Reyes it’s 2021. Nothing surprises me these days

@vadimkavecsky3698 6 лет назад

If you ever ran out of ammmo for this cannon, you could load smaller cannon into this one and fire it.

@jontee3437 6 лет назад

Lol I would think a 30 pound parrot rifle barrel would do well as a long range projectile. Probably would have a high ballistic coefficient due to the shape.

@moosemaimer 6 лет назад

Time the fuse just right and you could have it fire in midair! Oh, why did Mythbusters have to end...

@vadimkavecsky3698 6 лет назад

moosemaimer Or the small cannon could fire first while inside, followed by a big one. This way you have 19th century full auto 150ton cannon.

@devreed5931 6 лет назад

Vadim Kavecsky best comment

@Chebva 6 лет назад

Vadim Kavecsky Hell yeah man. No more ammo, just load in a bulldozer.

@jeffbruh3253 5 лет назад

Is it conceal carry?

@idooopstv9823 5 лет назад

Little on the big side for a concealed carry, maybe a truck gun?

@bassmith448bassist5 5 лет назад

I keep one of these under the seat of my old Dodge D100.

@bingbongabinga2954 5 лет назад

Not large enough for planetary defense so kind of concealed carry.

@davidca96 5 лет назад

lel sup Jeremy

@user-fo2xx3qh2b 5 лет назад

But does it take a glock mag

@tkmushroomer 4 года назад

Armstrong, The big guns seller: Well hello there, would you like to buy this 100 ton cannon? Me: Yeah, sure but.. how am I going to load it? Armstrong, The big crane seller: Well hello there!

@d3vitron779 4 года назад

Stonks

@adityaroy1946 3 года назад

Apple of that time

@rodhandermott1413 3 года назад

And you’ll need a stand to hold your 100 ton cannon won’t you?🙂

@RubSomefastOnIt 3 года назад

of course, you will need to have a crew trained, one for firing and one for loading and one for maintenance, here are our prices for a full training course and literature.

@themanformerlyknownascomme777 3 года назад

Which is Ironic as Armstrong himself absolutely hated these guns, he much preferred working on smaller regular artillery.

@georgeheld1901 4 года назад

The Battery Steele on Peaks Island in Maine had 2 massive 16 inch guns back in the 40s, and they only fired once as a test, but they broke every window on the island

@PALACIO254 2 года назад

That's great I love stories like this

@nicholassansouci2840 Год назад

Been there many times with my brother. The view from on top of the battery is absolutely beautiful

@carmelpule6954 5 лет назад

Eighty years ago I was born about two miles away from that 100-ton gun and I spent my youth at Rinella playing with other children in that Fort, which in those days hardly anyone ventured to go there. Under and around the gun there is an underground area which is quite large and in those days some building contractor or the Military had housed all his building structural tools in there. We played about in that area for about 10 years with no one caring about its historic value. Very close by, there is a Fort Ricasoli and also the area where they have a film facility. I saw the water gigantic water tank being built for Raising the Titanic and also saw the model being raised. The level of the tank was such that it blended with the real sea at the background. The model itself was quite impressive. Also, I saw some scenario from "The Gladiator ". My brother has one of the air-cooled radial engines which they used at the film facilities to make storms and wind with it. It is a 550 Hp aircraft engine. There is so much to see and the historic places could be more appreciated by both the locals and the tourists. Some years later at the age of 16, I went to Chatham Dockyard and then attended the University of Newcastle upon Tyne. I used to go to Bambrough Castle, which I learned that it belonged to Lord Armstong, the man who built the 100- ton gun and other armaments. Later on, in life I went to Barmbarough Castle where I was hosted by Lord Armstrong relations, his grandson I believe, but I am not sure. My wife, my daughter and I were given the run of the castle and it was a very pleasant surprise that I was treated so nicely by the relatives and descendants of Lord Armstrong who build the 100- ton gun, near which I still live to this day at Kalkara!

@teatonaz 5 лет назад

Thanks for sharing this. Long(re) life my friend. Cheers.

@TarmanTheChampion 4 года назад

Bad ass! I live not too far from fort casey in WA state & its always fun to do turret crawls

@joshuatate5671 4 года назад

Wow

@scottydouglass1892 3 года назад

@@TarmanTheChampion I am pretty sure every kid in Washington has been to Camp Casey. Flagler, Fort Stevens in Oregon, all so cool for any kid, no matter their age.

@andyman8630 3 года назад

my father was from there and spoke of the Axis air raids when he was 5(ish) grazzi hafna

@aryanson 5 лет назад

An old saying , The British sailors loves their grog, while the French sailors drink Champaign, while Italian sailors stick to port.

@robrocksea 5 лет назад

?Hmm strange I thought the French drank Wine. :)

@tSp289 5 лет назад

I do like how the English language is still full of low-level naval sass e.g. 'Dutch courage', 'Dutch tilt'

@freebeerfordworkers 5 лет назад

@@tSp289 Actually "Dutch courage" is what English and later British soldiers called the gin issued to them before battle. About the time gin was invented English soldiers were allies of the Dutch as they fought for independence against Spain and were first issued with gin. It made the prospect of death and mutilation in the near future less horrible. It was never intended as a slur on the fighting abilities of the Dutch which the wars of the 17th century gave them reason to respect.

@tSp289 5 лет назад

@@freebeerfordworkers Er, it kind of was. As with 'dutch tilt' or 'dutch angle' referring to a skewed angle, usually used in films now. It implies drunkenness, as does 'dutch courage'. Brits took up gin pretty enthusiastically, but that doesn't stop it being a point of mockery. Also I suspect you're not from Britain if you think that respecting someone and taking the piss are mutually exclusive. See the number of military jokes and stereotypes about everyone from closest allies, to different branches of the British military who absolutely relied on one another, to their most dangerous enemies. No one is spared. If Dutch courage is alcohol, British courage is humour.

@freebeerfordworkers 5 лет назад

@@tSp289 My source was a book by Correlli Barnett, one of Britain's leading historians beyond that, it's not something I think it's worth spending time arguing about.

@DSSlocksmiths 3 года назад

This is even cleverer than I first thought - and I thought it was pretty damned clever already! The idea behind the water accumulator is that you can leave the entire thing ready to go, but cold. In the event of something occurring, you then fire up the steam engine. You have 4 shots before that thing needs to be in full steam. Otherwise you'd have to keep the steam engine fired up 24/7 for as long as you needed it to be ready. This way you wouldn't. Brilliant.

@robertsneddon731 2 года назад

The accumulators store energy and release it in short bursts to carry out various tasks like operating the lifts and the rammers. Stationary steam engines of the time typically weren't powerful enough to drive anything substantial by themselves directly. A lot of old steam-powered machinery from that period such as swing and lift bridges, dockyard cranes etc. used hydraulic accumulators to provide stored energy when needed, using it up in short bursts at intervals. It's just that our normal vision of steam power from those times is of steam locomotives and marine engines and they obviously needed to provide power for hours at a time to keep trains and ships on the move. For jobs like this a small steam engine plus accumulators was a better bet.

@AmericanThunder 4 года назад

Pretty cool video! It's amazing how quickly land and naval large gun technology progressed up into 1940s. The 16" rifles used on the US Iowa-class battleships fired a 2700 lb shell using 660 lbs of powder, breech loaded, from a 120 ton rifled barrel soft mounted with recoil compensation, with a range of 24 miles and accurate enough to hit a target the size of an office building at maximum range. The barbette assembly including the turret mounting 3 barrels weighed 2500 tons.

@robertsneddon731 4 года назад

The Iowas and indeed all of the big-gun battleships weren't that accurate -- here's a link to an actual "fall of shot" chart for test firings from BB-61, the USS Iowa itself after it was upgraded in the 1980s to use modern radar sighting and firecontrol systems (the NGFS). The "office building" used as a scale reference in the chart is the Pentagon in Washington DC, reputedly the largest such building in the world for a long time. 36,000 yards is just over 20 miles, not the theoretical maximum range of the 16"/50 guns. fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/ship/weaps/bb-61-dnsn8709176_jpg.gif I suspect this was a "rigged demo" test with the Iowa stationary in reasonable weather conditions, not hammering along at nearly thirty knots in rough seas trying to engage an enemy force which was also dodging and weaving, making smoke etc. Really, WWII was the end of the big-gun battleships, most of which were sunk by submarine torpedoes and/or aerial bombardment from carrier-based aircraft which stayed well out of range of the dinosaur's mighty cannons.

@ClarenceCochran-ne7du 5 месяцев назад

The whole 100 years from 1820 to 1920 saw such huge leaps in technology, especially related to large and small firearms. It's literally mind boggling how quickly new systems were developed and then quickly discarded as even newer technology evolved. I've spent 40+ years studying this era, and still feel I've only scratched the surface.

@miatafan 5 лет назад

“So we need a big gun” “How big?” “As big as they make them, then make it bigger”

@Allan_aka_RocKITEman 4 года назад

"How big?" "YES!!!!" 😄😄😄😄

@ammarokla7217 3 года назад

Then there is the Schwehrer Gustav.

@Icetea-2000 3 года назад

@@ammarokla7217 Yeah, being DOUBLE as wide as the whole SHIP these guns were placed on

@JimFortune 6 лет назад

So, when does it go up for auction?

@RockIslandAuctionCompany 6 лет назад

First, we have to find a 19th century steamer ship to transport it.

@edi9892 6 лет назад

Jim Fortune Sorry, UPS refuses to deliver it saying it's too big...

@lycossurfer8851 6 лет назад

Better yet, can I get overnight delivery on it?

@WolfePaws 6 лет назад

@edi "While you were out, we left your packages with your neighbour Unintelligible Squiggle"

@hungryfilms3707 6 лет назад

I dunno I'd check fed ex for the shipping cost

@KittSpiken 2 года назад

The framing the gun behind you before walking up and revealing how far away it has was and how big it is was perfect.

@thatguy1909 3 года назад

I'm just impressed by the lack of wind noise through the mic.

@roderickwhitehead 6 лет назад

Essentially, this was the Minuteman III missile silo of the 1880s.

@MG-wi1eq 6 лет назад

R.C. Whitehead I love exploring the Nike missile sites in my area.

@rubeusswagrid2511 6 лет назад

Ive heard Adidas is secretly working on something to rival them.

@51WCDodge 6 лет назад

Along with Britians own Super Battleships HMS WArrior and HMS Black Prince, built in response to La Gloire. Warrior is in preservation at HM Dockyard Portsmouth along with other distingushed company HMS Victory and The Mary Rose. Warrior was outffited with 1836 Colt .36 revolvers (Check details for me folks!) Colt built a factory at Vauxhall in London to manufactuer them.

@noecarrier5035 6 лет назад

An excellent parallel. I wonder if men like Ian will be wandering around the ruins of missile silos in a century or two's time, talking about how impressive it was that they could deliver a few hundred kilotons of energy to targets five thousand kilometres away, considering the era... ?

@kovona 6 лет назад

5 km max range though.

@lukaszpokoju 6 лет назад

This is the real life Death Star! “Italia is too remote to make an effective demonstration. But don’t worry, we will deal with your rebel ships soon enough. You may fire when ready…”

@callehammar2743 6 лет назад

You fool! Deathstars are on the UK offensive weapons list!

@RockIslandAuctionCompany 6 лет назад

"I will make it legal."

@callehammar2743 6 лет назад

Good Luck!

@wierdalien1 6 лет назад

Commie Hater no the deathstar laser is. You can have the death star.

@JohnLeePedimore 6 лет назад

R.I.P HMS Alderaan.

@maverick9708 4 года назад

That museum guy is a legend, one of my favorite cameos 😂

@MrZog33 4 года назад

"If you have a problem, use a gun, and if that don't work, use more gun" This phrase is the meaning of this gun

@SuperAWaC 6 лет назад

eight miles. EIGHT MILES. with black powder. good lord.

@zxbzxbzxb1 6 лет назад

SuperAWaC Pretty incredible for sure, but it doesn't have a bayonet lug. Mark against Armstrong there 😕

@seanhanson418 6 лет назад

It can actually shoot farther than that but 8 miles is the distance to the horizon. Supposedly.

@ramjb 6 лет назад

theoretical range with max powder charge. Realistically at those times hitting anything at anything beyond point blank was pretty much a hail mary. The battle of Lissa (the battle Ian refers to at the intro of the video where the Italians got smacked) was fought at ramming distances (and I'm not kidding, there were several ships sunk by ramming), which points out how difficult it was to hit anything at any meaningful range. It wasn't until the 1910s, with the new Fire Control Systems, rangefinders and mechanical plotting tables, that fighting at long range was a possibility. Even Tsushima was fought at pretty close range (using WW1 and WW2 standards, that is). It's true that coastal artillery being land based (thus more stable and with finely and accurately prepared fire tables) had a much better accuracy than naval based guns. But even then, and by the 1880s, hitting anything of the size of a ship beyond a couple miles was more of a prayer than anything else...compound that by the fact that you're shooting once each 6 minutes and you have a real problem between your hands. TL:DR: yeah, 8 miles theoretical range. Useless at anything but point blank. Sure that the gun looks impressive, but as for it's true usefulness, let's say it was...very limited.

@simonmgustafsson 6 лет назад

ramjb You don't have to hit the target to make the cannon effective. They could fix a timed fuse on the end of the shell, which was filled with even more gunpowder, and have it detonating over, besides and even UNDER the target. The shockwave and the shrapnel would do the work without hitting the target.

@simonmgustafsson 6 лет назад

An interesting fact is that not all the gunpowder would ignite and was launched forward. Maltese hunters would then go around in front of the gun and collect the gunpowder for their shotguns.

@CheckMySix 5 лет назад

The Ultimate Machine Gun.. This is the true definition of a Machine Gun,a gun that requires an actual machine to fire it.

@bruin1771 5 лет назад

Someone needs to let the NRA know so they can lobby some.shit and lawyer the AK back into existence

@liberationwasalie2982 5 лет назад

@@bruin1771 never gonna happen

@bruin1771 5 лет назад

@@liberationwasalie2982 a boy can dream a boy can dream lol. Honestly I'm not an individual whose concerned about over arching gun laws. There are enough storys about crazy finds of firearms stashes.

@SlothDemon-fi3pi 4 года назад

Any gun's a machine.

@johnmadow5331 4 года назад

Is this gun required Form 10 to import to the US or transfer under

@kyraptor2521 4 года назад

So wait. Your telling me they had ships with 4 of these things on them? H O L Y S H I T

@LaLloronaVT 3 года назад

A single volley I imagine would nearly flip the ship lol

@unlink1649 3 года назад

humans have built a lot of angry boats

@shukterhousejive 3 года назад

@@LaLloronaVT If they need to retreat they point the cannons to the back and fire away like the tank in Vice City

@syedferoz2188 3 года назад

These were actually turrets a modern concept of cannons but not technically cannons these fired shells like howitzers the largest known cannon was an ottoman 110 pounder designed by a Hungarian engineer for Mehmet the conqueror the cannon ball itself was 110 pounds imagine the weight of the cannon it took 5 elephants to transport and 5 men to just load the ball oh and the dardanelles cannon was 1.8 ton and the ball itself was 1 ton lol

@dean2930 3 года назад

@@shukterhousejive pure gold 🤣🤣🤟🏻

@ganggamm3674 4 года назад

<a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="138">2:18</a> there’s a cloud smiley face to the left of his head

@alexanderhyder3199 4 года назад

"It was a really embarrassing experience for the Italian navy, and in fact it took them almost a decade to get over it." Basically the entire military history of modern Italy in one sentence.

@ergbudster3333 4 года назад

Clearly you didn't read Catch 22. In particular the passage about the cackling old man in the whorehouse.

@MrCmon113 4 года назад

They did well in the unification war though.

@DaroriDerEinzige 4 года назад

@@MrCmon113 Yeah, so good that Prussia said "Well, go f... yourself, Italy. Thanks for absolutly nothing." after the War ... ô.ô'

@Tommyg-rq6lj 4 года назад

Even tho i'm italian i'll have to agree with you on that Still we make food better than you

@Tommyg-rq6lj 4 года назад

@Baron Von Grijffenbourg god i frickin'love you

@fien111 6 лет назад

"We missed the ship, Major!" "Bugger! We'll just have to live with the tidal wave the missed shot created sinking it instead. Not very gentlemanly, but such is war"

@briananthony4044 5 лет назад

Actually in war back then it wasn't unusual at long ranges to only hit your enemy once for every 100 rounds fired. so line of battle ships had a large number of guns, up to 70 per side. With the monster guns that came along 2 to 4 major calibre guns became the norm. One advantage the fort had was that it was elevated high on a cliff so it could fire down on the enemy, who due to limited elevation of their own guns, couldn't fire up at the fort. I think the calibre of the 100 ton Armstrong gun was 17.6 inch. A 2000 pound shell was about the same as a later 15 or early 16 inch breech loading guns

@Adiscretefirm 5 лет назад

Half the crew would die from the sudden dehydration associated with terminal diarrhea seeing that shell coming towards them.

@Retrosicotte 5 лет назад

@@briananthony4044 Not so with this gun. Visited it quite recently, they have records showing that it achieved essentially a 100% hit rate on training shots against ships they put out in the bay. It being so static and predictable was a huge benefit.

@paavobergmann4920 5 лет назад

@@briananthony4044 From what I´ve read, both sides in the battle of Jutland had hit rates of about 1-2%, so under battlefield conditions on ships, that "one hit per 100 shots"-rule held way into WWI

@keithbrown2458 2 года назад

That canon is very impressive but like you I’m most impressed with the automated loading system I never knew anything like that ever existed thanks so much for sharing, just amazing

@yellowmonkee0 4 года назад

The Maltese are such cool people. I loved my visit there, great food, great wine and a cultural heritage the would put other countries to shame. ❤️ MALTA!

@magnusbrecha8466 3 года назад

If my ears are not decieving me, the guide´s accent is swedish :)

@Wotsitorlabart 2 года назад

@@magnusbrecha8466 I do believe your ears are deceiving you.

@AnimalMother98 2 года назад

Guide definitely isn't Maltese (I'd know being Maltese myself)

@SynchronizorVideos 6 лет назад

I've seen videos on this before, but everyone else only focused on the cannon itself. I agree with Ian here; the loading systems are the real magic of this installation. Brilliant stuff for the 1800s.

@jameswroe2403 5 лет назад

Armstrong had a house near Newcastle which ran on hydro-electric and hydraulics. Have a look at Cragside House on google.

@SpudfudXD 5 лет назад

@@jameswroe2403 I lived in rothbury a 2 min walk from cragside, its an impressive manor

@SuperDiablo101 6 лет назад

Can you imagine how LOUD this must have been....and because those poor Italians talk with their hands they wouldn't be able to cover their ears

@kinaj6972 5 лет назад

@@keencolios591 Exactly. That is why they talk with their Hands.

@saranoxxis 5 лет назад

@War Zone Caesar was stabbed 23 times

@jakeshaw6827 5 лет назад

Lol

@keyboardwarrior6296 5 лет назад

@War Zone That probably had more to do with celts living and breeding in Roman territory over the past 1500 years. Gestures were intregal to their language, and likely would have vestigial remnants as more celts had latin as a first language.

@keyboardwarrior6296 5 лет назад

@War Zone Caesar died because he was traitor abusing the roman system to pay his debts and glorify himself at the expense of the very foundation of their republic.

@dNIGHTCROWLERb 4 года назад

This was like having a tour in a museum, thanks for the experience Ian and the guy with a really cool Accent 👍😊

@CaptainMustanG4089 4 года назад

the sheer size of this is absolutely mind blowing, I would've loved to watch the firing process (but not doing the work)

@goofyfoot2001 6 лет назад

Over five minutes in and he still hasn't lit it up yet. Was hoping for a ballistics gel test.

@meareweird7714 6 лет назад

I am waiting for the mud test!

@videoviewer2008 6 лет назад

That's a different channel.

@dude93able 6 лет назад

Give it to Paul Harrell for his meat target. He'll let us know if it fits his hand also.

@christianstoll8160 6 лет назад

:-)

@christianstoll8160 6 лет назад

LOOL was just thinking the same thing...

@DIEGhostfish 6 лет назад

Ian I don't think that's a support beam in that reloading hole, I think it's a "Keep those damn kids out" beam.

@ForgottenWeapons 6 лет назад

Yeah, probably.

@fernav71 4 года назад

Great video. I travelled back in time and felt myself like a "steampunk gunner". Thank you

@goldenstarmusic1689 4 года назад

<a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="690">11:30</a> my goodness the acoustics of that chamber are intense, it would be amazing to get impulse responses there

@crazywowgoer 4 года назад

imagine what it would have sounded like in there when it fired.

@Antigonus. 6 лет назад

The bell boys at the hotels in Malta really go the extra mile.

@craigstewart6194 6 лет назад

Ἀντίγονος I was going to say theater usher.

@lycossurfer8851 6 лет назад

Actually they go about 5 miles on a full charge...........

@charaznable2379 6 лет назад

Gun designer sounds like donzi,selling boats to smugglers then to officials to catch the smugglers

@JohnDoe-ee6qs 6 лет назад

Char Aznable he was was doing the same thing with ships too, selling to both sides. a naval arms race is good for business especially if you are supplying everyone.

@simonmgustafsson 6 лет назад

That is the uniform used by the Royal Maltese Artillery in the Fort during the 1880s. The pill-box with a yellow band was used for stationed artillery while the ones with a red band was for mobile artillery.

@majormassenspektrometer 6 лет назад

Shooting footage is missing.

@captainfoxythepiratefox7024 5 лет назад

XD the guy even said if they shot once it would destroy the windows in the near town XD so i hate to live next to the cannon XD

@crimsonhalo13 5 лет назад

With that paint job, I think Ian's afraid to admit it shoots mustard instead of cannonballs. Maybe we can sell it to the place that holds the record for World's Biggest Cheeseburger?

@PeriapsisStudios2000 4 года назад

I think the camera got crushed by the shockwave when Ian fired it.

@marleyboy7732 2 года назад

This was really interesting. Can't imagine the process in a rush when this was in action. I'm impressed if this thing actually took down a ship from a long distance. Aiming must have been a nightmare.

@setbellic6916 2 года назад

As someone who really has no interest in guns at all, (some interest in general history), I find Ian's presentations fascinating. It's not just the discussion of the weapon but the background and context that he can include that makes them so interesting. Showing their place in history, and this is an excellent example. That he is now being invited to places to show stuff is a testament to the quality of his presentations. Great stuff.

@PallasGamer 5 лет назад

love how its playing "Rule Britannia" inside the reloading bay at <a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="560">9:20</a>

@robertfritz9916 6 лет назад

The Maltese guide was excellent and helpful. Good for him. Fun video!

@BMW7series251 5 лет назад

Agreed.

@bastianmeisen1796 5 лет назад

His english is pretty good, didnt really need subtitles even in the echo-less rooms

@haraldpettersen3649 5 лет назад

Robert Fritz - Okey 👍

@polynom1al 3 года назад

The historical context provided in your videos makes them so amazing to watch. Thank you for conveying both the impressive engineering that went into each artifact but also the historical context that makes them important. Love your videos!

@patlilburn5251 3 года назад

That was the coolest thing I’ve seen on this channel ever. I agree, the loading system is the best part, and I also agree with the remark that to ordinary citizens in 1880 the whole thing would be like sci-fi. I try but fail to imagine what it must have been like to be within a mile of that thing when they fired it, and do I ever wish I could tour one of the ships that housed 4 of them. WELL DONE!!

@dodoz25 6 лет назад

So, when's the mud test?

@whyjay9959 6 лет назад

It's self-cleaning!

@farmerboy9029 6 лет назад

Why Jay r/whoosh

@lepathewarrior4445 6 лет назад

Legatus Lanius Bait or did you whoosh yourself

@51WCDodge 6 лет назад

Umm , that happened when the gun was being shipped from Woolwich Arsenal to proofing at Shoeburyness. They manged to drop the gun off it's barge when loading. It spent 9 days on the bottom of the River Thames. The Times newspaer , AKA The Thunderer was not imprssed, the worlds most expensive gun dropped, and said so on it's front page.

@EuropeYear1917 6 лет назад

@Snake in a Box 1 Mud test will commence when Karl arrives on site... and when they can get a ship filled to the gunwales with thick enough mud to do the test. Oh, and even then it might be delayed, as they'll have to wait for the army of drunk dudes with milsurp small arms (most likely the Varusteleka employees) to show up to cover the gun... since Ian and Karl might just have some trouble doing it single handedly in a timely manner with as big as that mofo is!

@mwangikimani3970 4 года назад

An incredible feat of engineering - especially the loading system - given the technology available. Absolute genius.

@Ass_of_Amalek Год назад

I'm pretty sure that none of that system was innovative, it was just big. I think the real tricky part would have probably been the construction of the cannon. there's a technical drawing of a cross-section of the cannon that shows that it's constructed of many interlocking bands of steel (or wrought iron, I'm not sure), and they all would have been huge and very difficult to shape and assemble. the machinery used in the factory to build the gun (furnaces, cranes, power-hammers etc) would have been much more impressive than the machinery required to operate the gun. you can find videos on yourube of factories forging giant steel objects. the machinery is extremely impressive, and it would be even more so if it had to be powered on site by coal-fired steam engines.

@Martin_Adams184 3 года назад

A VERY good documentary. Everything is explained so clearly, and the pacing and detail of delivery explains everything very well indeed. Thank you!

@jblps 4 года назад

I like to imagine the steam engine was just for show and they had to use the 40 soldiers to manually pump the pressure every time.

@derekdziobek5998 6 лет назад

Hmm... black powder muzzle-loader? This cannon might actually be legal in California.

@michaelkane6797 6 лет назад

Depends on how many rounds the magazine holds...

@jomama2078 6 лет назад

Ghost cannon

@CruelestChris 5 лет назад

No it's got a hundred-round magazine and therefore is clearly an assault weapon.

@NoNameAtAll2 5 лет назад

@@CruelestChris "assault"

@CruelestChris 5 лет назад

@War Zone Fortress cannons do. In the original meaning of magazine, as in "a room where the ammunition is stored." That are the joke.

@JackedRado71 5 лет назад

“Ok” -Ian McCollum, 2019

@Ameritard 4 года назад

"Ok" x106

@capralmarines4043 4 года назад

Guide: Says something about the Cannon Ian: *OK*

@theshankman8682 4 года назад

Guide: yes, exactly

@ohhellno747 4 года назад

Take a shot for every Ok

@Tufhhuyy 4 года назад

@@ohhellno747 ok

@dzonbrodi514 4 года назад

That was immensely cool Ian, many thanks for showing us.

@bjornsvalling1066 3 года назад

Those Victorian engineers! Delightful video, thanks Ian.

@MaskHysteria 4 года назад

"Modern Italian Naval Victories", the book, is about as long as "How to Boil an Egg"

@Methusaleem 3 года назад

Legend

@germannoobgaming 3 года назад

@Johnny RoadTrain what?

@fshn4x4 3 года назад

Unless it's "navel victories"...those slick bastards know their way around bellybuttons.

@nicolaywoods3578 3 года назад

And the best comment ever. EVER!

@MAGNO82 3 года назад

Mmm naval rome empire command the world for 1000 years. Thats seems sufficiently for a book. :D american : people with short story and short memory . Lol

@BoloH. 6 лет назад

I wonder if these were shipped in huge crates with ACME logos on them.

@MildMisanthropeMaybeMassive 5 лет назад

Beep beep

@iaial0 5 лет назад

Instantaneous delivery ✓ * Gets squashed by a container *

@johnwunder3521 5 лет назад

Wiley E Coyote bought a couple of these @ acme surplus

@m1tanker64 4 года назад

Joni - Brilliant response!

@jamespuffer2889 4 года назад

I know Ian’s videos, I know he is using real facts, real statistics, and even real numbers, but my brain cannot fathom this gun actually firing. The sheer mechanics are astounding. You can sink a ship with 15” steel, 3 miles away, and even be able to score significant hits against lighter ships up to 8 MILES away! That is incredible engineering, nonetheless way back in the 1880’s. Very, very cool and very, very big gun.

@smilingcat1703 Год назад

Small mathematical note for you guys. If my information is correct, the standard rifle used by the British at the time would be a 1853 Pattern Enfield or the Snider Enfield conversion which used about 50 grains of powder. This cannon used approximately 3.15 million grains or about 63,000x the powder charge of a standard rifle.

@princesseponyboy1971 6 лет назад

I love the fact that rule Brittania is playing in the background of the engine room

@sleepyrasta14820 6 лет назад

🇬🇧

@deathtdow 6 лет назад

•TheKaisTzar • 'The British Empire is eternal!' and it will rise again, stronger and more powerful than before.

@teatonaz 5 лет назад

British Empire will rise again,...< - - great they you can help more with standing up to Russia and China,... need all the help we can get.

@Doomsday_Report 4 года назад

<a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="1160">19:20</a> "Hello, Italy? Our gun still works. Kind regards, Britannia."

@rogerpoca7428 3 года назад

That is the single best example of english cockiness anyone can come with

@darienalizieri6941 3 года назад

@@rogerpoca7428 lmaoo

@charlesbaker7703 3 года назад

Deference at its best!

@bigbud6842 4 года назад

That reloading station is incredibly impressive but I feel like I've seen lots of cannons and artillery of a similar size, they must be from a much later period in history though.

@nickdougan394 2 года назад

And I think you'll find that they were breech loading. Making massive muzzle loaders was the "steam punk" bit.

@coldandaloof7166 3 года назад

2 years and this never came up in my feed till now! What an awesome video.

@blueband8114 6 лет назад

Forgotten weapons and Ian never cease to amaze me with the great content of there show. This was great.

@pulluppng1938 6 лет назад

Their

@blueband8114 6 лет назад

Charlie Scene thank you, please allow me to atone for my sins. I shall head off to my shed, and thrash myself soundly.

@pulluppng1938 6 лет назад

Andy Uk yeah why not

@benparsons4979 6 лет назад

Let me point out some other mistakes, so you may further punish yourself - Forgotten *W* eapons - Th *eir* - *channel* Now change it before I kill you

@pulluppng1938 6 лет назад

Yeah Ben is absolutely right

@Gbejna 6 лет назад

As a Maltese, it's always cool to see some of this stuff get more attention! Fun fact: the bridge shown at the very start of the video (to enter the fort), was originally a retractable bridge (basically the 19th century steampunk version of a medieval drawbridge), known as a Guthrie rolling bridge

@fennviktorvich 5 лет назад

Damn neat.

@Perktube1 5 лет назад

I love how this is all just literally steampunk. It gives some legitimacy to the idea. Plus is like to know more about these ww2 war rooms.

@joebond5012 3 года назад

Fantastic video. How they managed to build that in those days is totally beyond comprehension. Thanks to all involved for sharing.

@ianallan8005 2 года назад

Armstrong’s rotating bridge (as you call it) is the Newcastle Swing Bridge. It used to be powered by the same accumulator system as your gun (flat plate with a circular shaft, lifted by steam).

@herpderpherpd 5 лет назад

Couple of things: 1) It's nice to see Robert Webb found a job in historical tours 2) The guy who pulls that string WAS the best paid soldier in the garrison, his payment was in firing the biggest derp gun in history to that point

@jackglossop4859 3 года назад

God it really does look and sound like him

@RockIslandAuctionCompany 6 лет назад

Thank you for the subtitles. Much appreciated. What a beast of a gun!!

@ryanbuckley3314 3 года назад

Wow. What an immense infrastructure. Such an awesome piece of history. Thanks for all the cool videos, everyone!

@TheWeasel19 4 года назад

I LOVE your coverage of cool history like this. PLEASE keep it up!

@ianpomfret4876 4 года назад

"It would fire the cannon right into the fortification [Note: this would be bad]" My sides

@killraven123 6 лет назад

A forgotten weapons video and a cup of coffee are the best accompaniments to breakfast.

@ClarenceCochran-ne7du 5 месяцев назад

What a fascinating 19th century view. Thanks to Ian and the Maltan Guard for taking the time to explain how the procedure worked.

@cmcconn100 2 года назад

Ian was more in AWE of this than anything I've ever see him review. It's pretty dang cool so I definitely empathize with him. Imagine the size of the smoke cloud when you fire it.

@rob9873 4 года назад

My ballistic calculator said ERROR when I tried to enter this cannons data in.

@Dreska_ 6 лет назад

"OK" - Ian

@4968ace 5 лет назад

lol

@worldpeace1822 3 года назад

“This gun was hi-tec at its time” and “This gun became basically obsolete when introduced” Hmmm.. ;) History is fun.

@besacciaesteban 2 года назад

The hidraulics and steam systems were still top of the notch, it's just the gun itself that became obsolete.

@macbuff81 3 года назад

This was an awesome segment. I'm not a gun nut but I love learning about the history of the tech and the historical context. Oh, the scenery also looks very nice! I need to visit Malta

@mikef4832 6 лет назад

The guy that had the job to pull "the string" must have gone deaf in 1 shot, or had been chosen because he was already deaf (or because his commanding officer hated him) XD. I cannot imagine the concussive force you would feel standing right by that monster. Probably shakes you to the core. The whole system has a Very, Very cool design especially for its age.

@kbanghart 5 лет назад

Brutal

@scowler92 5 лет назад

The string-pullers probably had joint problems, cracked ribs, ruptured spleens, appendixes...

@taggartlawfirm 5 лет назад

Mike F who actually AIMED the damn thing...???

@tritowerdesigns4481 5 лет назад

@@taggartlawfirm right. The scale of the reloading system is impressive but how do you fine tune the accuracy of somthing that large?

@Hrodn 5 лет назад

What was omitted from the video is that the gunner who fired the gun hid in a little cut out in the wall to help reduce the percussive forces on himself. Still, it isn't something I would like to do. Also, when the gun was being test fired, residents in the area were advised to open their windows so that they weren't broken.

@ethanprendergast6853 6 лет назад

I went to Fort Rinella a couple of years ago on my holiday to Malta and seeing the Armstrong Gun in person was unbelievable. The fort also do musketry, cavalry and artillery displays. The staff are highly knowledgeable and fantastic at bringing history to life. I’d definitely recommend anyone to go see it because I know I’ll certainly go again 😄

@amtree4140 4 года назад

I wonder if anybody back then knew that what they were working on (i.e. this cannon) would eventually be turned into a museum. That'd be pretty cool.

@nicwilson89 3 года назад

The complexity and ingenuity of this for the time is absolutely mind boggling

@SolidTaylor 6 лет назад

Well, Ian actually did it. He finally found the most epic forgotten weapon ever made.

@tombrennan6312 6 лет назад

Fort nuts are familiar with the gun even if gun nuts aren’t.

@daryljohnson6333 4 года назад

When he was holding that wire at <a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="371">6:11</a> I thought it was a firing wire and he was gonna light one off. Lol

@ucheekpo8593 3 года назад

Thanks Ian I really appreciate to see this old canon it's very cool although we did not have to see it fire but you did a great job.

@Necroskull388 2 года назад

One round every six minutes for something of that size is actually really, really impressive. I thought it would be like, one round every 20 minutes or one round an hour.

@martentrudeau6948 6 лет назад

What a great history, the British empire, the Italian nation, the Maltese island, its people and a very big gun, that island has a lot of history.

@teabagmcpick889 5 лет назад

<a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="540">9:00</a> The English harnessed the power of steam to drive the Industrial Revolution. The Italians thought of coffee.

@Ye4rZero 5 лет назад

The Africans first thought of coffee.

@teabagmcpick889 5 лет назад

@@Ye4rZero But sadly not pressurised steam, thereby missing the punt when it came to industrialisation & subsequently missing the point of the original comment.

@Solnoric 5 лет назад

Well I mean, this thing is basically a colossal espresso machine.

@approachinggnosis4613 5 лет назад

Ye4rZero lol bud..

@raffaeleirlanda6966 4 года назад

Teabag McPick Well, English tried to make a steam tea machine. They failed... 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 Have a good espresso people... 😀😎😘

@well_as_an_expert_id_say 4 года назад

You have such incredible videos, I'm truly thankful for this channel. Thank you guys.

@loganstewart7065 4 года назад

“Note: this would be very bad” thank you for the helpful anecdote. I would not have guessed a 20 ton round at point back range would be “very bad”

@ggdk2865 4 года назад

It's one ton, I think?

@BA-gn3qb 5 лет назад

We went from: "Hey, what's this string for? Oops!" To: "Hey, what's this button for? Major Oops!"

@gypsyqueen8563 6 лет назад

Does it take Glock magazines?

@maelgugi 5 лет назад

Of course, like a 1000 at once according to my calculations

@bepmooo 4 года назад

<a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="873">14:33</a> Very faintly can hear the British Fife and Drum music.

@ste309w 2 года назад

Brilliant video. After watching it, we visited Fort Rinella this summer while on holiday in Malta. Really interesting place to visit. The staff are very helpful and knowledgeable. Highly recommended a visit if you're in that part of the world.

@DiscordOfDave 5 лет назад

“There was danger of shattering windows in the city alongside here.” Makes me wonder how many injuries occurred just from operating the freaking thing.

@hans2406 4 года назад

In those times human lives were not so important. Like in certain countries now.

@MegaRazorback 4 года назад

I can answer that for you and it's a low number, 0 recorded injuries..It was never fired in combat, it only had 4 firings a year to make sure it was working/up to spec but what Ian failed to mention in regards to the 4 guns is this, only three actually survived at first due to the gun at the Napier battery being destroyed during fire trials, the crews operating that one were firing a shell every 2.5 minutes and cracked the barrel badly leading it to become too hard to hard to repair so they used that gun as foundation for a building...The gun at the Victoria battery was moved to replace it as the military deemed it a more effective site.

@MrCmon113 4 года назад

@@hans2406 It was 1880, not 2000 BC.

@ZGryphon 4 года назад

Worth keeping in mind that hearing loss wasn't considered a line-of-duty injury in those days, and I'm pretty sure the gunners involved in the regularly scheduled test firings would have suffered some.

@flamethrowercandle2354 4 года назад

@@hans2406 out with it. What coutries were you referring to and what's your political angle dutchie boy?

@SuicideNeil 6 лет назад

Malta: We need more Dakka! British Military: Will this do? Malta: _noice..._

@baker90338 6 лет назад

Britain arms company: 100 tons (or tonnes?) of pure earfuck. Malta: GIB ME EARFUCKS

@baker90338 6 лет назад

How much fenrisian ale are you on? Your forgetting that glass is able to be used to increase the gold per square area by painting it on the glass. Also it allows for also a increase in the cathedral look of imperial ships by having stained glass windows.

@baker90338 6 лет назад

the geth are also Abominable Intelligence, so that means their opinions don't matter... and should be destroyed ... with a orbital bombardment. ignore my expedition into the grey pyramids